Anderton swipes at old colleagues

By HELEN TUNNAH

Jim Anderton has launched his new political party's election campaign by taking swipes at old Alliance colleagues, saying they do not have the stomach for real politics in Government.

Mr Anderton, parliamentary leader of the Alliance and Deputy Prime Minister in the Labour-Alliance Government, said Jim Anderton's Progressive Coalition was the only party that could work with Prime Minister Helen Clark.

Senior Alliance officials and MPs had described the present Government as the worst in 50 years and that had "sickened" him.

Mr Anderton said voters had stark choices next month.

They could back National and Act, or waste their vote on a Green Party which wanted to hold Governments to ransom and would not be included in a coalition.

"We can choose the politics of indulgence and irresponsibility, like some of our former Alliance colleagues, who seem to enjoy oppositional politics and waving placards but actually haven't got the stomach for the real politics around the Cabinet room."

Mr Anderton and five other MPs were expelled from the Alliance this year in a bitter split. Although Laila Harre replaced him as the party leader, Mr Anderton did not step down as parliamentary leader.

His campaign launch was a low-key affair for 200 supporters at the Glenfield Leisure Centre. Entertainer Sir Howard Morrison dedicated his support to Mr Anderton and Cabinet minister Matt Robson.

Much was made of the party's Mission Impossible theme for the July 27 poll.

Mr Anderton said that despite forming only recently, the party had raised $200,000 and had 2000 members, which put it in "the top three political parties in New Zealand".

He warned against Labour being left to govern alone.

The Alliance's presence in the Government had made Labour consider closely every policy it pursued.

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